Things do not look too good in Syria. Take time to think about what's happening over there while not under the pressure of constantly having to react to every little thing.

May you and your good SWMBO have a really good holiday. (I believe SWMBO was first used ironically in the character of Hilda Rumpole, the wife of Horace Rumpole of Rumpole of the Bailey (first broadcast in 1975. A great series).

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Lieutenant Colonel (Field Artillery) John William Vessey (ASN: 0-65047), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with 2d Battalion, 77th Artillery, 3d Brigade, 4th Infantry Division. Lieutenant Colonel Vessey distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 21 March 1967 while serving as a Battalion Commander during a combat mission near Suoi Tre. During the early morning hours, Colonel Vessey's battalion received a massive assault by a Viet Cong regiment. Although more than 200 mortar rounds fell, Colonel Vessey fearlessly moved through his unit area, first to alert his men, then to direct various phases of the defense. When vital howitzer positions were destroyed by hostile fire, he rallied men from other sections to man the guns, and he himself assisted as a cannoneer. He was wounded during this action, but continued to lead and fire the artillery pieces. At one point, he spotted Viet Cong rocket launchers that were placing devastating fire into the battery perimeter. He seized a grenade launcher, moved into an open area and knocked out three of the insurgents' weapons. When an enemy tracer round ignited a drum of diesel oil and threatened to set off two drums of explosives nearby, Colonel Vessey ran to that highly dangerous point and helped move the drums to safety. His professional command and courageous fighting throughout the battle were instrumental in turning back the numerically superior enemy force and killing more than 600 Viet Cong. Lieutenant Colonel Vessey's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

"But for years clues had existed that Britain had also expatriated colonial records that were considered too sensitive to be left in the hands of successor governments."

" . . . the records had been stashed at a high-security storage facility that the Foreign Office shared with the intelligence agencies MI5 and MI6. It also revealed a bigger secret. This same repository, Hanslope Park, held files removed from a total of 37 former colonies."

"The files could easily have been trashed on at least three occasions, he says, probably without publicity. For a variety of reasons, they weren’t. Maybe it was the squirrel-like tendency of archivists. Maybe it was luck."